Encourage & Edify Each Other in The Holy Spirit

 

1 Thessalonians 5:17

Therefore encourage and build one another up,

just as you are already doing.

    Ephesians 4:16 (AMP Bible)

 From Him the whole body [the church, in all its various parts], joined and knitted firmly together by what every joint supplies, when each part is working properly, causes the body to grow and mature, building itself up in [unselfish] love. 

    What causes the church, the body of Christ, to work properly? The Love of God must be present in each one of us. And this is only possible when each one of us has God's Holy Spirit thriving within our hearts and reflecting the Love of God--Jesus Christ--in our lives. 

    When we listen to The Spirit, we learn what is True and what is evil; what is Righteous and Holy, and what is unrighteous and unholy. We begin to discern what it is that God is revealing to us, when we read and study our Bibles every day. We learn to recognize God's Voice--The Holy Spirit of God--and we are filled with gratitude that God has given His Spirit to us. 

    When Isaiah speaks of Jesus in Isaiah 11, he declares six aspects of The Holy Spirit of God that will rest on The Branch (Jesus Christ): The Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding; The Spirit of Counsel and Strength; The Spirit of Knowledge and Fear of The Lord. 

    Wisdom imparts wisdom to us. Knowledge of The Holy Word of God comes from Him. We can memorize chapter and verse, but it is The Spirit of God that writes The Word of God on our hearts. 

    Understanding The Word of God is given us when we receive The Holy Spirit and allow Him to reveal to us what God wants us to know. Moment by moment, day to day; gradually, for we are not able in and of ourselves to know and understand 'all that God has prepared for us' [1 Corinthians 2:9]. 

    As our Counsel, He is also our Adviser and Advocate. "Walk The Way of Holiness" [Isaiah 35:8]; "Speak The Word that I give you in season" [Ecclesiastes 3:1-8; Philippians 1:14; 2 Timothy 4:2; 1 Peter 3:15]. It is He Who defends us when we are come against in our trials. And when we listen to Him, as one who listens to his lawyer (defender/counsel), we will always come out ahead, even if we have to suffer first for the sake of the gospel we proclaim. 

    He is our Spirit of Strength. The joy we have in our Savior and His salvation is only possible when we have The Spirit of God in us, calling us to Rejoice! in The Lord. Therefore, we can truly say, "The JOY of The LORD is My Strength!", just as Nehemiah declared to the Israelites after Ezra had finished reading The Law to them. A reading which took from daybreak until midday. And though The Word of God caused broken hearts and weeping, the day was holy to The Lord: celebration was called for. 

    The Spirit of Strength empowers the bearer to preach the gospel message of salvation through Jesus Christ to people who need to hear it. We do not preach to the stars, nor to forests and babbling brooks. Those things have no need of a Savior. We speak The Name of Jesus in The Love of God, with compassion, integrity and honor. 

    We speak Jesus with boldness, humility, and perseverance. We speak Grace of God with patience and faith, believing that God will have His Way in each soul with whom we share our faith in Christ and why we believe what we believe. 

    The Spirit of Knowledge draws us to The Word and imparts knowledge beyond our ken, then breaks it down and makes it possible for us to know and understand what our God wants us to know. Do you know that you know that you know that Jesus is your personal Lord and Savior? Beyond a shadow of a doubt? Are you born again through the blood of The Lamb into the family of God? 

    The Spirit of The Fear of The Lord trains the body of Christ to have a reverent attitude towards its Creator: our heavenly Father: GOD--The I AM THAT I AM. 

    When we read Psalm 19:9, we see that The Fear of The Lord is Pure. In Psalm 111:10 The Fear of The Lord is The Beginning of Wisdom. In Proverbs 1:7 The Fear of The Lord is The Beginning of Knowledge. In 2 Chronicles 17:10 The Fear of The Lord brings terror to Israel's enemies. In Proverbs 10:27 The Fear of The Lord prolongs life. 

    In Psalm 25:12 The one who fears The Lord is teachable. In Psalm 128:1 The one who fears The Lord and walks in His Ways is blessed. In Psalm 34:11 The Fear of The Lord can be taught to those who delight in life. 

    This is how we edify--build up--one another. This Spirit of God Who teaches us in The Ways of The Lord God speaks to our hearts and joins us together as the body of Christ. He is our Wisdom, our Teacher, our Friend. And He is preparing us, at the beginning of our walk, all through our walk, and into the end of our walk with Christ, for a greater glory than we could every imagine. 

    ENCOUNTER - Here Be Lions

Know Your Priorities-Most Important Relationship

 

Foundational Living

Psalm 118:22

The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.

Isaiah 28:16

So this is what the Lord GOD says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.

Acts 4:10-12

"...then let this be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.

This Jesus is ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’

Salvation exists in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

Ephesians 2:19-21

Therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of God’s household,

built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone.

In Him the whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord.

Matthew 4:19

And He said to them, “Follow Me [as My disciples, accepting Me as your Master and Teacher and walking the same path of life that I walk], and I will make you fishers of men.”

1 Corinthians 14:1

Love should be your guide. Be eager to have the gifts that come from the Holy Spirit, especially the gift of prophecy.

     Without this Foundation, this relationship which is made possible by believing that Jesus is the Christ, Who is our only means of salvation, a person is doomed to fail in this life. Success is not measured by how much we own, nor is it measured by our level of happiness.

     What we own in this life (material possessions, wealth or lack thereof) is not what we take with us when we die. When our bodies cease to have life, there is an immediate separation. The body remains earthbound while the spirit/soul travels to its destination, which has been determined by that soul while it lived on this earth. 

     Each and every one of us will give an account for our actions, our thoughts and our words. We are responsible in our lifetimes for making wise choices/decisions. Particularly the decision to believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation. That must be done on an individual basis by each person who ever lived. 

Acknowledge our sins and repent of them

Believe on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ

Confess that He Is Lord

Determine to follow Him

     This can be accomplished through simple prayers. God wants to hear us speak what is in our own hearts. We can recite a prayer, but unless we really mean it, that prayer is just words and has no power to change our lives. 

Dear Heavenly Father,

I admit I have sinned against You and against Your Word. Forgive me of my sins and make me new in You. I believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross to pay the penalty for my guiltiness and rose from the dead walking out of the grave. 

I confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. Please be Lord of my life. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit that I may be able to live a life that pleases You. 

In Jesus' Precious Name,

Amen